SmartDraw Helps You Maximize the Results of Your Online Meetings
Online meetings, conducted using services such as WebExTM and GoToMeetingTM, are a terrific way to collaborate with people both inside and outside the organization.
But online meetings also have drawbacks. One of the most common is the lack of a shared set of notes that everyone can see, such as a whiteboard.
SmartDraw provides an ideal solution: a visual diagram designed for online meetings. It works like an electronic whiteboard, except that it's much faster and offers a permanent, sharable record of the meeting.
It's very easy to use. Simply open the Task Management diagram in SmartDraw and build an agenda in advance of the meeting. Lay out main topics to be discovered, and add discussion items as subtopics. The visual format makes it simple to build, edit, and understand. You can even assign action items to individuals and set completion dates.
SmartDraw makes it possible to create these shared notes in real time because of its automated design. It's actually quicker than writing on a real whiteboard. But unlike using a word processor, you get a clean, easy-to-read visual diagram.
When the meeting ends, simply share the file with the team. Action items and completed tasks can be viewed and updated on any device, anytime, anywhere. You can even convert your meeting diagram into a full project plan, complete with a Gantt chart and timeline, in a single click.
SmartDraw lets everyone collaborate on what's important: getting things done.
Adding SmartDraw to Meetings Saves You Time and Money
SmartDraw diagrams make it fast and easy to plan and conduct meetings. Using the power of real-time visual communication can save you time and money.
- Reduce average meeting time by more than 25%.
- Save $1,500 per employee annually through reduction of time waste.
- Achieve clarity and consensus faster.
- Share plans and action items easily, and move initiatives to successful completion more effectively.
- Eliminate the seemingly endless cycle of revisions and follow-up meetings.
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2. Share the Agenda with All Attendees
With your attendees being in multiple locations, you need to be able to distribute your visual agenda easily. SmartDraw lets you do this through your online SmartDraw premium account. Just use the Share feature and you can let anyone you choose view the meeting diagram. They can do it on any device and don't even need to have a copy of SmartDraw.
4. Assign Tasks to Those Responsible
Using the SmartDraw Task Management feature lets you easily assign action items to the people responsible for doing them. If you want, you can also set completion dates. Doing this in real time during your meeting builds consensus and accountability among attendees. Reassigning tasks is easy; just drag and drop. Everything automatically updates and realigns for you.
6. Tracking and Follow-Up is Automatic
Your SmartDraw meeting or project file is automatically backed up in your private, secure online SmartDraw account. Use it to create teams and track progress anywhere, on any device. Your team members, even non-SmartDraw users, can receive and update tasks and add comments right in the project file. SmartDraw users can share and edit each other's files.
1. Plan Your Meeting with a Visual Agenda
Effective meetings work toward a specific goal. Rather than using a traditional laundry list, organize the topics you want to cover with a visual diagram. The SmartDraw Task Management tool is ideal for this. Use your central goal or topic and build subtopics that need to be covered. Move items around and SmartDraw reformats your agenda, automatically.
3. Use the Meeting Agenda Diagram to Capture Ideas
SmartDraw is the perfect whiteboard for online meetings. The built-in visual processor makes it faster and easier to use than handwritten notes. And because it is visual, everyone in the meeting can see and process the information easily. Ideas, decisions and plans are all captured in your diagram, so important information is saved and easily accessible.
5. Convert Your Meeting Diagram into a Project Chart
If your meeting is about a project or initiative, SmartDraw lets you easily convert your meeting plan into a Project file. All of your data is instantly saved and available in four different views: outline view, project (Gantt) chart, assignment view and timeline. Adding or changing data in any of the views updates the others, automatically.
*Team features are available only in the Enterprise Edition of SmartDraw